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Leon County commissioners move forward with gun show loophole law

Leon County commissioners on Tuesday voted unanimously in support of an ordinance designed to close the gun show loophole. A public hearing will be held on the measure April 10.(Photo: Jeff Burlew/Democrat)Buy Photo

Leon County commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to move forward with an ordinance to close the gun show loophole for background checks and impose a five-day waiting period for private gun sales.

Their decision came as members of Moms Demand Action, Justice 850 and other gun control advocates packed commission chambers to express support for the change. No one expressed outright opposition to the ordinance, though one speaker suggested a waiting period of three days instead of five.

Commissioner Mary Ann Lindley first proposed such an ordinance in 2013, though she withdrew it amid staunch opposition from the NRA and others. She brought it back up last month after the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School left 17 people dead.

Local governments in Florida have little authority to enact their own gun control ordinances because of a bill passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature and signed by Gov. Rick Scott in 2011. However, a constitutional amendment approved by voters in 1998 allows counties to require criminal background checks and waiting periods for any firearm sales. Background checks for private gun sales by unlicensed dealers are not required by state or federal law.

“I wish that the counties had more authority,” Lindley said. “I would like to be able to see Leon County ban assault weapons. I realize this is symbolic in large part, but it’s also practical. And it is something that in our community we can do and I feel we need to do.”

Mary Ann Lindley(Photo: Leon County)

In other developments, Sheriff Walt McNeil expressed concerns over how his agency would enforce the ordinance, saying legal and manpower issues would preclude the Sheriff’s Office from staffing gun shows. He suggested county code officers take the lead in enforcement efforts, something the county is planning to do if the ordinance passes during a public hearing set for April 10.

“We’re not opposed to trying to tighten up the loophole,” McNeil said in an interview. “We want to make sure that we comply with state and federal law.”

Public speakers pleaded with commissioners to approve the ordinance, saying it’s the one thing commissioners can do to address gun control. Thomas Whitley, a member of the faith-based Justice 850, noted that of the record 18 homicides in Leon County last year, 15 involved guns.

Roy Blondeau, a former federal prosecutor who helped draft the 2013 law, said passing the ordinance is the only legal step commissioners can do to control the sale of guns.

“We can do this,” he said. “We can stop the sale of guns at gun shows to people who shouldn’t have them. These loopholes have allowed gangs, terrorist groups, out and out criminals to obtain massive amounts of guns because there’s no limit in the law to how many guns you can buy.”

Two former county commissioners, Henry Lewis and Cliff Thaell, joined in the chorus of speakers supporting the measure. Lewis, who served as president of Florida Memorial University in Miami, recalled an incident just off campus in which a man who’d bought a gun at a gun show shot and killed another person.

“That could have been prevented,” Lewis said. “If (the ordinance) saves just one person, we have won that battle. We saved that one. Because that’s what it’s all about — saving lives.”

Lindley, in an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, said she’s not sure whether the ordinance will stop mass shootings. But she’s hoping the measure will have an impact on crime and help prevent suicides.

“Our local crime, shootings, domestic violence and suicides — I think it will have an incremental good effect," she said.

According to a county staff analysis, the ordinance would require background checks when any part of a gun sale happens on property the public has a right to access, including gun shows, flea markets, firearm exhibitions and garage and estate sales. The analysis says local law officers could enforce the ordinance by staffing gun shows and conducting undercover operations.

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Sheriff Walt McNeil(Photo: Hali Tauxe/Democrat)

However, a legal analysis by LCSO says deputies must have reasonable suspicion to detain someone and must personally witness an offense before making an arrest without a warrant.

“Leaving a gun show with a gun is NOT reasonable suspicion to believe that the person violated the ordinance, because the purchase could have occurred from either a licensed or private dealer,” the analysis says. “Without reasonable suspicion, a deputy could not require anyone leaving the gun show to show ‘proof’ that the gun they purchased had a required NICS check. A deputy similarly could not detain a person walking into a gun show.”

The LCSO analysis suggests using county code enforcement personnel, not deputies, to monitor unlicensed gun transactions. If the code officer finds unlawful transactions, he or she could file a sworn complaint with law enforcement, and a deputy could apply for an arrest warrant.

McNeil, in an interview, said he simply does not have the manpower to assign deputies at all places where unlicensed gun sales might occur.

“We can’t be on the front end of checking without a reasonable suspicion that a crime’s been committed,” he said. “What they would be asking us to do is stand by with a deputy for every transaction that takes place. And we can’t do that.”

County Attorney Herb Thiele told commissioners that county code officers would act as the “eyes on the ground” in enforcement efforts. He said enforcement of the ordinance would be complaint-driven, like other code matters.

Commissioner Bill Proctor, who proposed a similar measure years ago, expected a far more contentious public discussion on the ordinance. Earlier in the meeting, Lindley noted that few in the community backed the ordinance when she brought it up in 2013.

“Tonight, the people that we’ve been looking for for years have shown up,” Proctor said.

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or follow @JeffBurlew on Twitter.